Star of One Less

It was just too hard to focus on anything, not to mention being able to decipher what Thomas kept shouting at me. The place that I drove to, a good 30 minutes past Echo Lake off the Hollywood Freeway, looked like some sort of musical rabbit farm. I started wondering why I had agreed to come here in the first place... Right, because I successfully convinced myself it might be less boring to check out this so called best indie music venue in town, rather than watch movies at the hotel.

Upon returning to my hotel, I found my gaze occupied by the stamp on the left wrist hiding under my shirt cuff. And my head was experimenting relentlessly with heavy rhythms and vague passages from hours ago. Still feeling assaulted by throbbing in my brain, an image of a young girl with smiles and wings drew me back for some reason.

[Image via Getty]

When I heard of this unexpected death of a young girl who was a well known New York based fashion model from a rich family, I felt uncomfortable in some way not apparent. Hm, that kind of news normally does not create any void in me any more, remember? Yeah, I get it, I get that no death is ever insensible, and I haven't quite yet become one of those who believe committing suicide is merely an ultimate form of tantrum, but... Still, a lonely rich kid who couldn't overcome job stress? As Léon put it bluntly, "it's not just when you are a kid. It's always like this."

Nevertheless, this news sucked me in like a black hole that took residence. I found myself identifying with all the anguish she might have experienced. But I digressed. You see, except for media coverage, now nothing else can be truly learned. Nothing else can be done.

Simple, she's gone and we are left with one less.




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Huh?

Within a month after its initial release, over 200 people are reporting to the discussion board at Apple.com that their brand new MacBook Pro with a 7200rpm hard drive configuration is making annoying noises and stuttering (a brief system freeze). If you count people who have just bought this new model but do not know the board even exists, the number is definitely worrisome.

However, what concerns me most is not the fact that I have just spent 3400 CDN + tax to replace my old one and all I've got is a machine that only disturbs my workflow with all this chirping & stuttering (A scout's honour!).

It is Apple's current official stand with regard to this malfunction. They are calling this beeping & freezing behaviour normal. It has been reported that Apple is circulating this in house memo, which advises AppleCare representatives to tell the inquirers that those symptoms are perfectly normal and there is nothing wrong about it. Yup, true story.

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2049659&start=240&tstart=0

So, listen up those who have failed to shell out extra 399 CDN for AppleCare Protection Plan at the purchase + have noticed this annoying 'uh oh' 14 days after you opened the box: You are on your own.

To be honest, I think Apple has already recognized what's happening with the new models. And I am also sure they will release an EFI to fix them in the near future. But to me, their attitudes toward this issue right now is simply unacceptable.

Mac just works, right?
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What?

drawing by Ms. Arlene over at Comics ... and Drawings and Stuff

Yeah, it was highly unfortunate that I had to see this movie at the theatre in this beautiful Friday afternoon. So, Wolverine is now a werewolf, eh?

All kidding aside, I've always believed that a film should be considered as an independent entity whether it has been created based on a certain material or not. Hence, how we should take films has far more to do with how well various aspects of them have executed, than how truthful they have been to the source. Obviously.

What I always find humorous, however, is this hypocritical concept, often promoted by so called film pundits, that such faithfulness is somehow a way to assess how accomplished the final product is.

But that's not the case here. Those deviations are, in fact, the least fallout of this movie. Nothing in this 107 long minutes doesn't seem to intend ever on establishing a story or a character. They are just ... there. The whole affair feels incredibly lazy, contrived, and so forgettable. Oh, oh, I just realized that it's been almost four months since my last entry. Hm, life must have been good. Or ... What? Don't change the subject? What subject?


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La La La

It seems simply impossible for me to focus on more important tasks especially for the last few days.

Maybe it's because of this thick fog floating around the town. Or maybe because of these people around me, who can't stop praising religiously Mr. Boyle's latest output. Ah, I need to show sketches + comps to one of my clients by this afternoon, but probably only about 80% has been done. Yeah, here comes a good old all-nighter. Another project, which is building slightly complicated Flash slide shows, has been initiated. It needs to be done by the end of this month, so it appears that I've got enough time slots to work on that one. However, so far their Flash movies' behavior has not satisfied me dearly. Gonna be looking at those time-lines over and over. Hm, no problemo. And... right now I am working on the second version of my website. Been able to build only 2 mock-ups, but don't like them ... like at all. I can almost hear Nelson's laughter. Haha, yeah. So I've been only drawing on sketchbook + screen back and forth, like a heroin junky with obsessive compulsive disorder. La la la...




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Morning Sun

As dividing my time between East Coast and West Coast, one thing that I have started to enjoy is this little moment after staying up all night; when I open up curtains & windows and see the awakening of the sun with its overwhelming crimson aurora. Really, there’s something magical about watching those crisp air & beam of light floating around with somewhat comatose state of mind. Witnessing those warm colours blending into a hundred different hues of cobalt in the very new born sky.

Would be a beautiful thing to share.


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Hello

In this beginning of the New Year, the first thought on my mind has not been even close to the notion of excitement. It is more like whether I have earned this new start. Right, I have somehow managed to resume another year of my life and initiate a new phase in my career. However, it doesn't matter that my enthusiasm level is the highest it's ever been. Another year, another place, you are going to be thoroughly missed.


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Fragmentary Thoughts

I seriously think I need to work on my smiling.

Or maybe it is more like I want my old smile back. You see, I have been trying not to show a smile in public for a while ... eh, come to think of it, really long time. For some reason, I used to believe that smiling was the offspring of weak emotions, and on numerous occasions in my life, I simply couldn't afford to display them. I would rather have chosen to look careless, although it wasn't exactly easy to be that way either. But the worst thing is ..., since I've realized mine is awkward, whenever I need to smile, I even stop to respond properly or even precisely. Not good. Especially now I've decided to commit myself to work with a team. Well, I guess I just got myself a New Year's Resolution.

Have you seen what happened to him in Casino Royale?

And you are still saying that you didn't like this new one much, because he just starts to go around killing people right off the bat? I don't know. In fact, I would have been disappointed personally if he didn't go berserk and looking for a revenge in this one. Wasn't expecting he'd be doing that in a suave way, too, you know. Since this new one is a direct sequel to Casino Royale, it wouldn't feel right if he seems to have gone through much refining himself as a sleek. He's not Superman. He can't just walk into a phone booth, and shazam, changes into this super international Her Majesty's secret service. No?

Although it was originally conceived as the third story of Chungking Express, the author seemed to set out make Fallen Angels look different from his previous film.

He's achieved the difference by adopting more of vivid colours, supplementary hand-held camera technique, and the frequent change of visual perspective conveying a sense of distance in closeness. This was said to be his idea to show the relationships of people living in a dense urban environment, where everyone is physically close to each other but mentally apart. However, the most crucial distinction of this film lies somewhere else. Fallen Angels' ending, unlike Chungking Express', hints seemingly self-possessed but subtly sane hope for those angels towards the future. It is as if the author has allowed the characters to leave all of their despair and muddled nihilism behind.

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Mickey Rourke is The Wrestler

While I am still collecting my thoughts after binging on movies last night, the trailer of The Wrestler has hit the net this morning. You can view one here at Apple, or if you feel icky about iTune, click the image above to see one over at its official website. And now it's your turn. Leave all your reservations and when the film comes to a theatre near by you, go watch this Mr. Aronofsky's mighty attempt to grow up.



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From an Old Notebook

On Paris, Texas (directed by Wim Wenders, 1984)
What really gets me in this tale of loss upon loss is its overall warm and funny texture. Here, Harry Dean Stanton gives a genuine performance as Travis, a guy who has to track down his wife and wants to make sense of whatever the incident that drove her to abandon her son. When Travis finally finds her, the viewers will realize how completely the author has got them tied around his finger. A truly powerful work from Wim Wenders and Sam Shepard.

On Porco Rosso (directed by Miyazaki Hayao, 1992)
It seems that the author simply wants to show us how valuable and wonderful it is to be alive and humane. No exhausting hyperactive emotional roller coaster ride, nor obvious spun-out social commentary here. And this simplicity is what gives this film its true strength. Of course, he doesn't forget to bring the viewers wonder and amazement as usual, by showing off his top notch ability both as a craftsman and as a storyteller.

On American History X (directed by Tony Kaye, 1998)
Is it a great film? I don't think so. Nonetheless, it surely comes with a premise of visceral and exhaustive emotion. The viewers would not even be able to explain their sensory experience with this film as 'enjoy.' Because it should be as 'endure.' At the end, ambiguously or not, it is going to bring out a discussion or two of where people are in the stance of moral beliefs. And, isn't that what this film intends to?

On 25th Hour (directed by Spike Lee 2002)
Although I can't quite agree with an opinion that this film is Spike Lee's best since Do The Right Thing, 25th Hour is where he finally seems to get over his own tendencies of going nuts on unnecessary preaching. You could simply take in the characters without feeling someone's breathing down your neck. For that matter, the moment in the middle of this film when Monty sees 'fuck you' written on a bathroom mirror deserves extra attention.



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November

This noun came from Old French novembre, and from the Latin novem, meaning nine. It refers the ninth month of the Roman calendar, which began in March. In Old English, it was Blotmonað: month of sacrifice, the time when the early Saxons prepared for winter by sacrificing many animals, which they then butchered and stored for food.

To me, it refers to anything suggestive of Winter, now especially, the season of endless nightmarish rain, in which people here usually seem to lack the ability to see beyond immediate events, and to see the possibility of escape. It can also describe the phase when people start their intentional hibernation with powerful but anonymous laziness. After all, we are the beings who tend to long for ever-elusive freedom while simply existing under unmitigable control.



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